Covering for surfaces exposed to the weather



Nov. 16, 1937. w. H. OUTMAN 2,099,572

COVERING FOR SURFACES EXPOSED TO THE WEATHER Original Filed May 29, 1951 ATTOR YS Patented Nov. 16,1937

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE COVERING FOR SURFACES EXPOSED TO THE WEATHER Original application May 29, 1931, Serial No. 540,846. Divided and this application April 30,

1936, Serial No. 77,091

12 Claims.

This invention relates to a covering material for surfaces exposed to the weather and to the process of making the same, and more particularly to units in the form of strips made from sheet roofing having on the exposed surface thereof sections separated by space simulating stripes to simulate shingles or other structural Shingle simulating units or elements cut from sheets of suitable fibrous material or other fabric and impregnated with a waterproofing or weather resisting material have heretofore been known in various forms. In the manufacture of roofing, whether in the form of sheets or of unitsv or elements such as shingles or shingle strips, the surface of the impregnated felt commonly known as roofing ordinarily is covered with a eoating of asphalt either on one side of the impregnated sheet or on both sides. Thiscoating imparts not only an additional weather resisting quality to the roofing but also aids in providing resistance to wear and helps to give the felt the desired degree of stiffness and weight and to add to the mechanical strength.

To the surface of the asphalt coating 8. layer of surfacing material, usually of mineral or simi-, lar stable material in granular form, is applied to provide additional resistance to wear and to prevent the asphalt coating from running" under the action of heat, thereby maintaining the coating of the asphalt upon the sheet .and the protection of the felt against the weather.

One method of producing such sheets or elements, especially of producing elements in he form of strips in which the surface to be e posed is divided into sections simulating shingles or other structural units separated by a space simulating stripe or groove in the asphalt, is shown in the Letters Patent to Outman, No. 1,426,497. This patent discloses the method of making shingle strips by scraping channels or grooves in the adhesive asphalt coating on a moving sheet of roofing material, depositing granular material on the adhesive material and in the channels, embedding the granular material in the asphalt coating in the surfaces between the channels and then removing the granular material deposited in the channels. The granular material insuitable quantity and of suitable grain size and color to provide the desired surfacing effect heretofore has been applied over the width of the sheet without regard to the presence of the grooves or their ultimate purpose in simulating the spaces which require a character of surface different from that of the sections which they separate. It has, therefore,

been the practice heretofore in carrying out the manufacture of covering materials according to the prior process of Outman, following the embeddingof the granular surfacing material in the portions or sections of the sheet representing the shingles or other units. to brush out the grooves by a suitable brush corresponding in width to the width of the grooves and intended to be aligned therewith at a point in the travel of the sheet following its delivery from the place at which the granules are embedded in the sections.

In the use of the process of said Patent No. 1,426,;97 certain features have been found to be disadvantageous both in the carrying out of the process itself and in the product resulting therefrom. In my prior application, Serial No. 540,846, I have pointed out certain of these disadvantages and difllculties. In said prior application 1 have described and claimed a process. and the apparatus for carrying out said process, which is an improvement upon the process-of said patent. I have also described in said prior application certain features of the product which may be produced by the process of said application which constitute an improvement over the product which is-produced by the process of said patent. The present application is a division of said prior application, Serial No. 540,846, filed May 29, 1931 and relates to said improved product.

Owing to more or less unavoidable variations in the delivery of the sheet to the machine and of the control of this delivery, a somewhat uneven alignment: in the running of the sheet results and dimculty is therefore experienced in maintaining the alignment of the grooves with the brushes for removing the granules from the grooves. It will be clear from a study of the Outman process that of necessity the removal of the granular material and therefore the position of the brushes is remote from the point at which the grooves are formed and that as a result it is diflicult or impossible suitably to associate and relate the action of the brush with the formation of the groove. Consequently the brush may act not only so that it does not properly remove the granular material from the groove as intended but also, by its imperfect alignment with the groove or the imperfect alignment of the sheet with the brush, it may remove some of the granular material embedded in the asphalt coating of the sections or shingle simulating areas. Thus is produced an imperfection in the product, the edge of the section or areas which ultimately simulate shingles or other units becoming uneven and irregular and taking on in the uncovered portions the character of the surface of the groove rather than of the surface of the unit simulated. When such imperfect strips or elements are placed in a roof or other assemblage of units having sections divided by grooves, these imperfections become marked and spoil the desired effect.

Another difliculty experienced in the manufacture of strips or other elements made with the grooves or channels according to the prior Outman process is that of suitably controlling the amount of the coating removed by the scraping action in the formation of the groove in the asphalt coating so that enough of the coating will remain at the bottom of the groove to afford protection of the roofing felt but not suflicient to cause the granular material to become embedded therein. Not only has it been necessary to adjust as accurately as possible the setting of the scrapers or irons used to form the grooves, but it has been necessary to carefully shape the portion of the iron making the groove so as to produce the desired displacement of the asphalt coating without making a ragged edge on the shingle simulating section and preventing as far as possible uneven bulging of the asphalt adjacent to the groove in'the areas-to be used as shingle sections.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a product in which is prevented adhesion to the coating in the channels formed 1 in the adhesive coating upon a sheet of covering..mate- I rial. of -mineral surfacing material other th'an -.:that intended-to surface these channels Another object of the invention isto provide elements having sections divided by, space simulating grooves in the weatherproof coating, which space simulating portions themselves will have a substantial weatherproof coating.

i l-further object of the invention is to provide, a shingle simulating strip having shingle 'simulatirig sections separated by' stripes'in the form of grooves to simulate the spaces between, the' shingles, which sections are coated with granular 'j material to provide a surface simulatingthe shin; gle, while the groove presents a surface 'a'lso' surfaced with mineral material but of 'acharv acter distinctfrom the shingle simulating sur- 'faces and serving to demark said sections,"

A still further object of the'inven tion is to produce an asphalt coated sheet of roofing vmaterial having applied thereto granularjmaterials I of such degree of fineness or'coarsenessgin'the grooves and on theareas adjacent thereto re spectively that the areas separated by the grooves will simulate shingles or other structural .unitS and the grooves will represent the spaces b -i tween the units.

' The present invention, therefora relatesto a covering material having an [adhesive coating thereon in which grooves or channels are formed" to demark areas upon the surface of the covering into. sections simulating structural units. In these channels a suitable materialis deposited to form a surfacing upon the adhesive in the channel having a character to prevent the further adhesion thereto of any of the granular. surfacing material spread upon the areas adjacent to the channel to provide a Wear resistin or'channelf p U U H f In the process as disclosed in saidprior "applisurface of desired texture, color or other characteristics as described above.

The material deposited in the channels is preferably a stable mineral product in granular form but of such grain size as not to fill the channel or groove or materially reduce the depth thereof. It, therefore, while effective to prevent adhesion to the adhesive coating of the groove of the granular surfacing material applied to the sheet for the purpose of producing the surfacing effects above mentioned, may help to preserve the space simulating characteristic of the groove. The character of the fine granular material deposited in the grooves may also be such that the texture and surface appearance of the groove is not only in contrast to the surface appearance of the areas adjacent the grooves but has an outstanding character of its own. v It, therefore, itself may serve properly to present or accentuate the simulation of the space between shingles or of joints between structural units, such as masonry joints, ,or of other spaces or separating areas. c

The product made according to the invention, therefore, may take many different forms, such as shingle strips having thereon the simulation of 'a plurality of shingles in which the channels or grooves represent the spaces between shingles, which shingles are represented by the surfacescovered with granular material separated by the channels, or such as covering elementsin ,strip form in which the groove may represent,

the lower edge of a unit simulatingfa clapboard of wood. Allsuch products in which a channel is used, as has been-des cribed,'m'ay be produced according'to the process of said prior application, Serial No. 540,846'and'are included within the scope of the invention. fIhe'product of my as a covering materialhaving an adhesive coating thereon in which channels are formed and having in the channels, applied to the coating therein, amaterial to prevent' adhesion of the granular mineral materials used for surfacing the covgrmg r A particular feature ofthe product of myinI-i venti'on consists in the deposition under suitable 1 or groove in such a way that at least the bottom surface of the channel is suitably covered with I said material which adheres to the adhesivejco'atf j ing left in the bottom of the channel'but is not;

spread over the area of the surfaces 'adjacent conditions "of a-suitable material'in the channel" to and separated from eachotherby the groove cation; Serial No. 540,846,1 form the "groove in invention, therefore, may be broadly described;

the adhesive'coating and thenapply the fine granular material to the surface-of the 'iOOv'e and before spreading upon the sheet of covering material the granular surfacingfinaterial to produce the desired surface effect. I may spread this granular surfacing material without regard to coveringthe channels or grooves. The material which'falls into the grooves in the process of said prior application isprevented by the'previously applied fine' granular material from adhering to the asphalt coating in the grooves will fall therefrom leaving the granular'material adhering to the face of the coating and the fine material adhering only in the grooves.

By properly relating the size of and the amount of the fine material applied to the grooves or channels to the depth of the groove and taking into consideration the size of the granular surfacing material upon the face of the coating the granular surfacing material upon the face of the coating may be embedded without forcing into the adhesive at the base of the grooves any of the latter material resting in the grooves. Thus, not

only is the said granular material free to fall from the grooves as just described but, owing to the substantially complete separation provided by the fine granular material in the groove, none or substantially none of the granular surfacing material will remain adhering to the bottom of the grooves as is the case in the process of Outman.

The fine granular material is confined sub-- stantially to the grooves and provides the proper coverage of the asphalt coating in the grooves with mineral surfacing, thus protecting the asphalt coating against the weather and preventing deterioration of this coating and subsequent reduction of the impregnation of the felt. It also provides an increased resistance to fire with the protection of the mineral surfacing as the fine material may completely cover the surface of the groove. As the fine material adheres substantially only to the groove and is not spilled over upon the faces of the coating on the areas adjacent the groove a cleaner and sharper groove aflording better demarcation of the areas simulating structural units is secured.

Moreover, it is a feature of the invention that the fine granular material deposited in the groove. in consideration of its depth and in consideration of its width is spread over the surface of the groove to give the proper coverage for protection of the coating of the groove and to prevent adhesion in the groove of the granular surfacing material used for the faces of the sections, while avoiding-an excess of the fine material which would fall from the groove with the granular surfacing material when the sheet, as above mentioned, is suitably traversed.

As, by the process of said prior application, Serial No. 540,846, the place of delivery of the fines" is close to the place at which the groove is formed, proper delivery of these fines to the groove to produce the product above described is secured.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view of an apparatus similar to that disclosed in the Outman Patent No. 1,426,497 but arranged, as disclosed in said application, Serial No. 540,846, to produce the covering of the invention;

Figure 2 is a plan view of the apparatus shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a detail view of the pressureiron or scraper shown in Figures 1 and 2;

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4--4 of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken on line 5-5 of Figure 1 showing the pressure member or scraper supported in relation to the sheet and in relation to the spouts for confining delivery of the fine granular material to the grooves; and

Figure 6 is a section of the roofing sheet channelled and surfaced according to the present invention. v

To illustrate the invention I have shown a long sheet of roofing material A which may be made of felt, or any other suitable fibrous material. This sheet is supported, guided and fed by a number of constantly rotating rolls, and it moves in the directions indicated by arrows.

In Figures 1 and 2 is shown a form of apparatus for coating a sheet of roofing with asphalt and for surfacing the coated sheet with mineral surfacing material in accordance with the process of my prior application, Serial No. 540,846. The roofing sheet A is led over guiding rolls 30 and 3| into the receptacle or tank I in which it passes under a roll 32 submerged in the liquid asphalt contained in the tank. The sheet thus becomes coated on both sides and upon passing out of the fiuid asphalt in the tank it travels betweenrollers 33 and 34. These rollers act to remove and return to -the tank I the excess asphalt carried by the sheet. In this manner a substantially uniform coating of asphalt is applied to the sheet to form a weatherproofing and weather-resisting layer and to provide an adhesive upon which the mineral surfacing material maybe subsequently applied to the sheet.

Upon leaving the rollers 33 and 34 the coated sheet passes above. a pair of rollers 36, spaced somewhat apart, andbelow the pressure member or scraper 38 mounted between the two rollers 36 and so as to bear upon the upper side of the sheet. The rollers 36 support the weight of the sheet and receive the pressure brought upon the sheet by I the pressure member or scraper 38. The scraper 38 is so positioned that the scraping edge or edges 39, which may be in the form of notches or teeth formed or cut in protrusions from the surface of the member 38, press into and remove or displace a portion of the asphalt coating to form the groove.

In order properly to locate the pressure member 38 and to produce the desired scraping action whileaffording a certain flexibility, the member 38 is suspended by. rods 45 from a suitable support 46 upon which are fastened brackets 41 to which the rods are attached. The rod 45 may be in two separate parts connected byturnbuckles 48 to provide the desired adjustment of the pressure member 38 relative to the moving sheet. The bracket 41 is so constructed, as with a ball joint, that the pressure member 38 may swing slightly in the direction of the motion of the sheet in order that the pressure applied to the sheet and the efiect of the scraping of the protrusions, or teeth, 39 may be produced by the action of the weight of the pressure member 38 acting against the drag of the asphalt coated sheet. The sheet upon delivery from the rolls 36, having passed under the pressure member 38, will be grooved with a number of grooves corresponding with the number of protrusions 39 upon the pressure member 38.

- In the particular embodiment illustrated, as shown in Figure 3 and Figure 5, the member 38 is provided with three protrusions having notches therein to form the teeth 39 as shown in detail in Figure 4. At the left hand of Figure 3 is shown the arm 40, which is of somewhat longer length than the protrusions 39 and, with the corresponding arm on the opposite end of the member 38,

serves as a guide for the roofing sheet A. Thus material which will adhere to the adhesive coating and present a dry surface to the superimposed surfacing material, In practice it has been found advantageous to use a finely divided slate from which the dust has been separated. While the particles are minute, they preferably have a surface and size of appreciable degree, that is, they are not finely comminuted or powdered. This finely divided material, therefore, is preferably sufliciently sharp to have a surfaceto which the asphalt will adhere or of sufficient extent to separate the asphalt coating from the surfacing material showered upon it, that is, it will not be completely covered with asphalt. While the material is of relatively small size or thickness and therefore occupies no substantial depth in the groove, it is effective to prevent adhesion to the asphalt of the mineral surfacing material which is subsequently applied to the roofing sheet.

In Figure 1 adjacent to the portion of the pressure member 38, a hopper 55 is mounted and con tains the fine slate. A feed roll 56 is provided below the hopper to deliver to a funnel or a plurality of funnels 57 a controlled amount of thefine slate. The funnels 51 are connected at theirlower ends to spouts or pipes 58 which are engaged by brackets 59 adjustably fastened upon the pressure member 38 by means of bolts 60. The bolts 60 are inserted through slots in the brackets 59 so as to permit the lateral adjustment of the bracket 59 relative to the member 38 and to its protrusions 39. The pipe or spout 58 may be made flexible so that by adjustment of the bracket 59 the discharge end of the spout may be properly positioned relative to the protrusions 39 and to the grooves 6 formed thereby. This flexibility also permits a motion of the member 38 carrying the brackets 59 engaging the spouts 58 relative to the funnel 51 and the hopper 55. By suitable modification of the construction, relative motion between the spouts 58 and the protrusions 39 may be provided to vary the point of application of the fine slate or to compensate for variations in'the position of the groove upon the sheet.

The fine slate is preferably delivered in a continuous stream through the spout 58 into the groove 6 as the sheet travels continuously from under the pressure member 38. By suitably controlling the feed from the hopper 55, the fine slate is spread over the surface of the groove without being spilled upon the adjacent asphalt coated areas B indicated in Figure 2. The fine slate adheres to the asphalt in the groove, the rate of delivery of the fine material being such as to cover the surface of the groove with substantially no excess material. As the asphalt coating is not yet hardened as it leaves the scraper, the fine slate adheres thereto. A certain degree of drying of the coating is effected after passage from under the spouts and the sheet may then be delivered under the hopper containing the mineral surfacing material which is to be caused to adhere to the asphalt coated areas B.

In practice this surfacing material is usually of granular slate, although other stable surfacing materials, usually of mineral origin, may be used. Within the scope of the invention is included any suitable surfacing material which will to the fine material in the grooves. 65 is provided with a feed roll 66 for delivery of the shower or stream of the surfacing material upon the sheet. The shower is delivered to the sheet over the fullwidth thereof, the granular slate falling intothe grooves as well'as upon the areas B. The sheet carrying the granular surfacing then passes around the rolls 61 and 88. The granular slate applied to the areas B becomes embedded therein upon passing around the roll 51 and any excess material, including that whichhas fallen into the grooves 6,'upon leaving the roll 81 falls again into the hopper 65 or is delivered thereto upon the surface of the roll 61. Since it is possible to deliver the fine slate to the groove in controlled amount and so to spread the material over the surface of the groove and thus to provide no substantial excess of the granular slate, there is substantially no off fall of the fine slate with the granular surfacing material returned to the hopper 65. The sheet is then delivered over the roll 68 to a suitable winding roll or it may be delivered to an apparatus for cutting the sheet, for example, transversely, into strips to simulate a plurality of units such as shingles.

The .sheet upon passing around the roll 58 will then be covered on the areas B with the granular surfacing material to simulate the surface of shingles or other structural units and these areas B will be separated by the grooves 6 in which the fine slate adheres but to which the granular surfacing material does ont adhere, being prevented from so doing by the fine slate in the grooves. As will be seen from Figure 6, a relatively thin layer of the fine material adheres to the bottom of the groove and the coarser grain surfacing material adheres to the thicker coating of the areas B and is embedded therein. The thickness of the asphalt coating at the bottom of the groove may be appreciably greater in the product produced by the method of said prior application, Serial No. 540,846, as shown in Figure 4, as compared with the product produced according to the Patent to Outman, No. 1,426,497, thus affording a better protection for the sheet of roofing felt A at the point where the grooves are formed and making possible a sharper groove because it is not necessary to remove or displace so much of the asphalt to form the groove. The effect of demarcation is retained or improved due to the sharpness of the edges of the grooves, and

the depth of the groove is not appreciably diminished by the deposition therein of the fine' slate. Thus an improved product is obtained, the elimination of the operation of brushing out the ex' cess granular material, as applied according to the process of the prior patent to Outman, preventing moving of the product.

In Figure 1 and Figure 5 the member 38 is shown suspended by a ball joint which permits lateral or transverse movement of the member 38 relative to the coating and surfacing machine as well as permitting the longitudinal movement described above. This arrangement permits movement of the member 38 in accordance with the weaving or lateral movement of the sheet A as it'travels through the machine. The positions of the protrusions 39 relative to the sheet, therefore, are substantially constant. As the sheet is guided by the arms 40, it may move laterally to a considerable extent relative to the other portions of the machine, while a substantially constant relation or a substantial parallelism of the grooves 6 to the edge of the sheet A is maintained, because of the arrangement of the pressure member 38 so as to move laterally with the movement of the sheet. As will be clear from a study of Figures 1 and 2, the spouts 58 through which the fine slate is delivered to the grooves are also arranged to move laterally with the presvantage.

sure member 38. The fine slate, therefore, will be delivered constantly into grooves regardless of the motion of the sheet A transversely of the machine. In other words, the arrangement shown provides'for a fixed or a predetermined relation between the protrusions 39 forming the grooves and the spouts 58 which deliver the fine slate to the grooves. This predetermined relation may be maintained, therefore, regardless of the "weaving of the sheet as it travels through the machine. Thus provision is made for insuring delivery of the fine slate to the groove and the covering of the surface of the groove by this fine material.

While the invention has been particularly described in connection with continuous grooves in the asphalt coating of a sheet of roofing material and is of especial advantage when such sheets are subdivided, as by cutting transversely of the grooves, into strips or elements having sections on the surface thereof simulating structural units such as shingles or other units, it has general applicatlon in connection with sheet material carrying an adhesive coating upon which a layer of surfacing material is caused to adhere when it is desired that said sheet shall have portions to which the surfacing material does not adhere. By the deposition of suitable fine grained material or finely subdivided material of the desired color, texture or other characteristic, the adhesion of the surfacing material applied over the extent of the surface of the sheet may be prevented in those areas to which the fine grained material has been ,applied. Especially when a reduction in the thickness of the coating of the adhesive material is utilized for'the purpose of demarcation of the surfaced areas or for the purpose of bending the sheet along the line of such reduced thickness or for other purposes, the application of the fine grained material is. of ad- 'I'his fine material being confined substantially to the groove, serves the double function of prevention of adhesion of the granular surfacing material and of assisting in the definition and demarcation due to the contrast of the fine material with the granular surfacing material. Such variations in use and application are within the scope of the invention."

Having thus described my invention claim:

n 1. A covering material comprising a sheet having a depression of defined width formed in a face thereof, and granular material in said depression and susbtantially covering only the surface thereof, saiddepression and the granular material therein demarking the area of the covering adjacent the depression.

I ROW 2. A covering material comprising a sheet hav-.

ing a channel formed in a face thereof, and granular material in said channel; said granular material being of such size and being in such amount in the channel as substantially to cover at least the bottom surface of said channel and to demark with said channel the area of the covering adjacent the channel.

3. A covering material comprising a base in the form of a sheet, a coating of adhesive on the surface, thereof having a channel formed therein, said channel demarking areas. oLthe surface of the sheet of defined character, and finely divided mineral material substantially covering the surface of said coating in said channel only.

4. A covering material comprising a base in the form of a flexible sheet, a coating'of plastic adhesive on atleast one surface of said sheet, a channel formed in said plastic coating and defining predetermined areas of the sheet, finely divided in the channel and of a character to occupy no substantial depth therein but to prevent adhesion of the mineral surfacing material, and mineral surfacing material adhering to the areas of the coating separated by the channel.

6. A covering unit comprising a sheet of roofing material, a coating of plastic weather resisting aidhesive on a face thereof, a channel scraped in said coating but having a part of said adhesive coating covering its bottom surface, finely divided mineral material adhering to and covering the coating in said channel only, said channel serving to demark an area on the sheet simulating a structural unit, said area being surfaced with coarse granular mineral material to contrast with the channel and simulate the structural unit.

7. A cove-ring element simulating structural units comprising an asphalt impregnated sheet of roofing material, a coating of asphalt on the surface of said sheet having therein a channel of defined width to simulate the space between structural units, a layer of fine granular mineral material adhering to the asphalt in said channel substantially to cover the surface of said coating therein, and a layer of coarser granular mineral material adhering to the areas separated by the 3 on the coating in said grooves substantially-to cover the scraped surface thereof, and coarse granular slate on the coated areas separated by the grooves and simulating the shingles.

9. A covering material comprising a base having a channel formed in the surface thereof, said channel being of defined width and depth and demarking an adjacent area of the surface of the base, and granular material of given character substantially only in said channel, said granular, material being of such grain size and in such amount in relation to the width and depth of the channel that the surface of said channel is substantially covered with said granular material while the form of the channel with respectto said adjacent area substantially is maintained.

10. A covering material comprising a base having a channel formed in the surface thereof, said channel demarking and defining an adjacent area of the surface of the base, and granular material I defined edge for said adjacent area separating said adjacent area from said depressed area, and granular material of given character on said depressed area and substantially confined to the surface thereof so as to substantially meet said edge to demark said depressed area from said adjacent area.

12. A covering material comprising a sheet having a coating thereon of adhesive material, said 10 coating having a portion thereof formed as a de- 

